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A. HI SCHAUVI.

CLOSURE FOR HAND' HOLES.

APPLICATION FILED IIIAYIS. m5.

Patented Aug. 8, 1916. l

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entras ARTHUR H. SCHAUM, OF ST. LOUS MISSOURI.

CLOSURE FOB, HAND-HGLES.

Specification of lLetters Patent.

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Application filed May 13, 1915. Serial No. 27,745. l'

To all whom t may concern.'

Be it known that I, ARTHUR H. SCHAUM, a citizen of the United States, residing at the city of St. Louis, State of Missouri, have invented certain-new and useful linproveinents in Closures for Hand-Holes, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to hand-hole plates and .more particularly to means for securinghand-hole plates invpo'sition to close a hand-hole, and has for its object to provide a simple, cheap, and effective hand-holel plate adapted to be secured in position `without the use of nuts, screws, or the like 'they occur, Figure lv is a plan view of a hand-hole plateY embodying.;` the present invention associated with a fragment of a` boiler or the like, showing the fastening l means in place securing said plate in position for closing a. hand-hole; Fig, 2 is a ver tical cross sectional view of Fig. l showing, a side plan View 'of the key driven hoine in a position securing the hand-holeplate in place, and showing, also, said lkey in dotted lines in ,a positionpartially removed from locking or wedging position. Fig. 3 is a view partly in cross section substantially at a right-angle to 'the cross section Fig, 2, and partly in plan showing a side elevation t the body-portion o'l' the hand-hole plate and the outwardly extending` slotted lug borne thereby with their associated parts depicted in cross-section; Fig. Il is a crosssection on the line lf-A., F 2, of the key; and Fig. 5 is a cross-section on the line 5 5, Fig. 2, of the key.

Plate l being the inner closure plate may be constructed of any suitable ,material and its lateral face 2 may out-line a ligure of substantially theshape and size of handhole 3 in boilerplate 1l or the like, so that said plate 1 may substantially register in Ii the opening of said hand-hole, the height of said lateral face 2 being appreciably less than the thickness ot' said boiler-plate adjal cent said hand-hole, as shown in the drawings, said plate l being constructed with-a lateral extension or fianged portion 5 extending beyond said tace 2 to provide a seat for mounting thereon gasket (3 or the like between said extension and the inner" wall of said boiler-plate 4 or the like adjacent lthe edge ot' said handehole. Plate l is provided with an outwardly extendingr lug 7 borne substantially centrally or' said plate and being adapted to extend outwardlyY therefrom through said hand-hole and befeo yond cover-plate 8, said cover-plate being adapted to cover said hand-hole and being adapted, also,

outer edgerest upon or overlap the outer wall ol a portion of said boiler-plate or the# like adjacent the edges offsaid hand-hole, as best seen in Figs. 2 and 3, said coverplate being` provided with a substantiallv centrally located opening 9 therein adapted to pei-init said luf@r 7 to protrude therethrough, as shown in. the drawings, the protradingend-portion of said lug being pro-l vided with a hole l0, which may be substantially triangular in shape as best seen in lig. 3, said hole 10 being adapted to receive i-:ey ll tl'ierethrough, said key being preferably curved and tapered as best seen in Fig. 2. and being, also7 substantially t i-y angular in cross-section as lshown in Figs. 4. and 5, the curve ot said key being` such that each end thereofl will be' turned away `from the outer surface of cover-plate when said parts are in place, as best seen in Fig. 2.

Flanged extension 5 constructed integrally height of lateral face 2 of said plate l above said flanged portion being, as hereinalmve described, appieciably less than the thickness of boilerplate 4f or the like adjacent hand hole 3, the forward surface ot said plate l.- will not come in Contact with the inner surface of cover-plate S when said parts andthe parts associated therewith are in place with gasket 6 in position and key ll in locking engagement, as best seen in Figs. 2 and 3, thus providing that said plate l, flanged portion and lug; 7 may be with plate l, and the i 5, and gasket will constantly be under the torce of the vfoiwvard pull of said tapered key 1l insaid locking position, and thus providing that key l1 bearing upon the outer to have a portion adjacent its.

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surface of cover-plate S will constantly.

cause the surface adjacent the outer edge of said cover-plate overlapping a portion of the material adjacent the edge of said hand-hole .to bear firmly against said overlapped portion to hold all parts of this device operatively in place in closing position.

Opening l0 is so disposed in the forward end-'portion of lug 7 that the base of the' triangle outlining the shape of said opening will lie substantially parallel `to the plane of the faces of cover-plate 8 when said coverplate is in closing position, as shownl in the drawings, and the apex 'of said triangle will be turned toward the outwardly extending l, terminal of said lug, thus providing that when key 11 is inserted into said opening,

the base-portion formed by the triangular shape of said key adapted to enter said triangular opening, will be turned toward the adjacent outer face of said cover-plate. Key 11', being tapered from its larger end adjacent head 12 to its opposite terminal, forms a Wedge which may be advanced into said triangular opening suiiciently far toward said head 12 to draw plate 1 forwardly and to push cover-plate 8 irmly against the material adjacent hand-hole 3 to form a substantially fluid-tight joint between flanged portion 5 and the adjacent portion surrounding said hand-hole, by ans of pressing resilient gasket 6 or the ike tightly between saidanged portion and said adjacent portion surrounding said ,hand-hole, said key beingcurved along it/length so that said base-portion thereof presents a convex curve alongi the length of said key to the adjacent outer surface of said cover-plate, so that, as said key is longitudinally advanced in said opening 10, a portion of the surface of said base outlined by said convex curve slidably engages a portion of the outer face oi' said cover-plate adjacent the edge of opening 9 in said cover-plate, and, also, the apex-por- 'tion of the triangular cross-sectional shape of said key is slidably in engagement with the adjacent apex-portion of said triangular opening l0, as shown in the'drawings.

I claim: Y

In a hand hole closure,`the combination of an inner plate of like outline as the hand hole and fitting easily therein With'a peripheral flange to bear on the inner wall of a boiler, a central outwardly-projecting lug on the plate protruding through the hand hole and having a triangular, slightly tapering opening therethrough, an outer cover plate adaptedl to bear on the external wall of a boiler over the hand hole and having a cen tral aperture therein for said lug to p'ass freely, one side of said triangular opening in the lug being within the aperture back of ARTHUR H. SCHAUllI.

Copies-of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C. 

